by Gina LaManna
“It worked for twenty-six years. Nobody knew my whereabouts, not even my family.”
“Not even me.”
Silence hung between us like a thin wire, a golden strand that would shatter with a breath.
Eventually, he cleared his throat. “What if I told you that’s not the full story?” He leaned in, fingers steepled over the table. “As you have discovered by now, I lead The Faction.”
My body tensed as I waited for him to continue.
“The Faction is not, as you suggest, a tool to kill off an entire species. It was formed to return paranormals to their place in the world as it once was. We are a race to be respected, to be proud of—all the paranormal species. The vampires, the witches and warlocks, the faeries. Shifters and gnomes, giants and mermaids. We’ve all gone into hiding.”
“It’s better than starting a war against innocent people.”
“Innocent people who lead witch hunts, breed vampire hunters, and otherwise conspire to eliminate our races?”
“There has to be a different way. We can all live together.”
He laughed, quiet. “A noble thought, one I’d expect from the Mixologist. Your mother would’ve said the same thing.”
“But you didn’t listen to her.”
“I would’ve listened, but I wasn’t given the chance.”
“Because you chose The Faction.”
“I didn’t choose it. They chose me.”
My shoulders straightened, my back rigid. “I don’t believe you.”
“I figured as much. That’s why I kept this.” Lucian reached into the pocket of his shirt and gently withdrew a small object. His fingers wrapped around it lovingly as he shielded it from view and admired it in private. “Here. I had this made for her the day before the fire. I wasn’t planning to leave, Lily.”
Lucian dropped a tiny, cold object into my palm. I flinched when the cool metal landed against my skin, and then I drew it closer. I studied the jeweled ring, not comprehending.
“What is this?” I held up the tiny, dainty thin band with a beautiful ruby fastened to the center. “What is it?”
“All I wanted was to earn a diploma in order to provide a life for my family, and then return to The Isle. To be with her.”
“With...”
“Your mother. I selected this ring the day before the fire and have carried it with me ever since. I’d planned to propose the next time I returned to The Isle, preferably over her birthday.”
My breath locked in my chest, straining to escape. “But you chose The Faction.”
“Don’t you understand?!” He stood, and with the motion came a piercing, guttural cry. “She was my life! I would never have chosen The Faction over her.”
His hands fixed on the edge of the table, bringing the slab of wood with him as he stood. The dishware, the food, the candles—all of it clattered to the floor, broken and burned.
A candle brought fire to the rug, a puff of smoke rising where it’d singed the fabric. A strange man—staff of the castle, based on his attire—scurried in and began dabbing at the fire. He stopped once he caught the look on Lucian’s face and retreated out of sight.
We stood, just Lucian and I, staring at one another. His hands hung at his sides while I’d just barely managed to clasp the ring in mine before he’d torn the room apart.
When he spoke, it was with the blade of a knife on his tongue. “There would be no Ghost if it weren’t for her.”
“Ghost?”
“The Ghost. That’s the name they’ve given me.” He laughed, dry and humorless. “The dead man living. The dead man brought to life for the sole purpose of carrying The Faction forward.”
“Yet you continue to do the job,” I said, papery thin in my response. “You could’ve walked away. I would die before I joined you.”
“Would you?” He squinted, an almost forgiving look in his eyes. “Put yourself in my shoes, and—”
“I don’t need to. I’m there now.”
With supreme patience, he gave a tight smile and reached into his pocket yet again. This time, he withdrew a thin piece of newspaper. His face changed as he read the words several times before looking up at me with pain in his eyes. He extended the paper with trembling fingers.
I took it, watching his face as I flipped the article around. However, instead of a sheet of words like I’d expected, there was merely a caption underneath a photograph of a woman.
A beautiful woman, plain-faced and smiling. She had features that reflected a familiar face—my own face, I realized with a start. “This is her?”
“Read it. It’s a human newspaper from Minneapolis.”
I bit my lip, holding back the shock and fear battling to take over. At once there was sadness and joy—seeing a photo of her, holding a piece of her in my hands.
The words, however, were an obituary.
“They called it a mugging gone wrong,” he said, breaking the silence. “She had human identification on her as Millie Banks—obviously fake.”
“But...”
“She died on the mainland. It must’ve been just after she’d dropped you in protective custody—likely, she tried to return home, but one of them...” he hesitated, flinching. “One of the humans got to her first.”
“You believe that?”
“The gun fired, from what I can tell, when it wasn’t supposed to be loaded. I uncovered the police report. The rest of it is a mystery. A case never solved.”
“The timeline here doesn’t add up.” I pressed my fingers to my forehead. “You were going to propose to her the next time you saw her, but then they took you...but that was over a year before my mother died. So why are you still here?”
“Tell me, my daughter. Can you escape from this?”
“From what?” I frowned in confusion, but the next moment, my mind turned hazy and foggy once more. An almost peaceful delirium, a path with no resistance. All that mattered was the voice in my head and following his instructions.
When he asked questions, I answered.
When he instructed me to move, I moved.
When he righted my chair and asked me to sit, I sat.
“I still don’t understand.”
“They kept me sedated for over a year. Under the influence of blood magic and other spells. Keeping me disoriented, washing me with their plans, their intentions, and my duty to fulfill them. When I re-surfaced to the world, your mother was...gone. I couldn’t contact your family as our relationship had been a secret. I didn’t know you existed. Delilah, my world, was taken from me, and I had nothing left.”
“And now you’re on a vendetta.”
“No, I’m out to set the balance of this world right, and I’d like you to join me.”
“I will not. What happened to her...” I gave one last look at the paper, then stepped across the room and handed it back. “Was all The Faction’s doing. They killed my mother. They killed the woman you loved, the one person that would keep you from joining their cause. You think I’ve been lied to? Why do you think you were kept sedated until after her death?”
“Lily, no—”
“This place. How did you do it?” I asked, changing the subject and marching toward the curtains on the far window. “Wish magic can only be used for good.”
I pushed one curtain back, fighting the urge to cry. I couldn’t afford to cry. I also couldn’t run, couldn’t hide, couldn’t make this disappear, so I needed to learn and understand and focus on those to whom I could still be of service. Poppy, Peter, Manuel...the image of Sophie, a hand on her stomach, appeared in a rush and bolstered my resolve.
The darkness swirled outside, trapping us within the castle walls. It might protect, but it also encased us all in a lightless cage.
“There are rarely black and white decisions in this world,” my father said, his tone that of a schoolteacher. “What is wish magic?”
“Three requirements,” I murmured. “It cannot be selfish, it can do no harm, and it must inspire a sense of
wonder.”
“Very good,” he said. “Is there anything about good or evil?”
“It can do no harm,” I said. “It can’t hurt anyone.”
“It’s insinuated that wishes will be for the good of people, but nowhere is it a requirement. Then again, who’s to say what’s best for the people? You believe in your fight, and I believe in my cause. We each believe strongly that we are right. Neither of us are hurting others.”
“Maybe not physically. An unfortunate loophole.”
“I’m not debating; I am explaining,” he said sharply. “Using those three things, wish magic can be very powerful. A form of magic unlike anything this world has ever seen.”
“Except in blood magic.”
“Yes, it does have that raw, pure sort of magic to it, doesn’t it?” Lucian lifted his nose upward, his profile powerful and sharp, and then he studied me. “What are you thinking?” he asked in the ensuing quiet. “I am here for you, Lily. I want to get to know you.”
“Most fathers don’t have to kidnap their daughters to get to know them.”
“You’re not most daughters. You’re special.”
As much as I’d waited to hear those words, as much as I’d wanted to know just one of my parents, the moment was bittersweet. The words were there, but they spewed from the mouth of the enemy.
“There will be a gala tomorrow night,” he said, changing the subject. “And I would like to introduce you as my second in command.”
“No.”
“You can volunteer willingly,” he said. “Or...”
“I thought you wouldn’t use blood magic on me again.”
“I hope it won’t be necessary.”
My heart constricted, sinking further. “You will do whatever it takes, won’t you?” I turned from the window and shook my head, eyes glistening with tears of rage. “I will never be your daughter, nor will I be your second in command.”
Then I turned, stormed from the dining room, into the kitchen, bursting past Belinda and the kitchen staff, all of whom rapidly tucked guilty expressions into cleaning up the dishes.
“Let me help you to your room,” Belinda said, scurrying behind me. “I think the dress was a success, don’t you?”
I strode through the castle, lost and not caring where my feet pulled me. Belinda hurried behind, struggling to keep up.
“Miss Locke, your room is the other way! Let me help you. I can explain. He can come off harsh.”
“Don’t,” I said, turning to face her. I pointed away, anywhere, as my mouth curved into an ugly frown. “Don’t follow me.”
“But—”
“Leave me alone!”
I raised my hands, anger sizzling around the edges of my fingers like lightning. My magic brimmed within me, struggling to emerge with a burst of untamed emotion.
I had no intention of using any magic at all on Belinda, but it worked. She disappeared down a hallway, leaving me alone.
Alone.
As I’d always been and would always be.
I had Poppy, I had Zin, Mimsey, X, Gus, Hettie and the rest.
But as I wandered the hallways all by my lonesome, I wondered how on earth they’d continue to love me...knowing I’d come from a man such as him.
Chapter 28
BELINDA FOUND ME HOURS later.
I’d stumbled through the castle for some time, feeling eyes on me everywhere I went, watching as I moved through the dimly lit hallways. I pushed back curtains, tried doorknobs, and hadn’t found anything of interest.
Whoever was watching me had most likely also been guiding me, and the doors I’d tested that were locked hadn’t been on accident. Someone was letting me think that I was in control when really, I was no better off than a hamster in a maze of LEGOS.
Eventually, I found a balcony at the end of a hallway and planted myself there, waiting for someone to collect me and take me back to my room. I’d wanted fresh air, which was ironic since none of the air in Wishery was fresh at all.
They lived in a bubble, the swirls keeping us hidden and holding us captive all at once. I breathed deeply, but it didn’t make a difference. My mind flew, crunching through the information I’d learned this evening, my chest tight.
“He really does want to get to know you,” Belinda said once she found me. “May I join you out here?”
I gave a one shoulder shrug from my place in a chaise lounge overlooking Wishery. Quaint little homes, cute streets, and bright shops lined the roads below, now overshadowed by the very magic that’d built this place.
“For what it’s worth, he truly believes nobody he loves is safe so long as the humans roam free. The technology they’ve invented—guns, weapons, everything else—they are as strong as us now, if not deadlier. They are more dangerous to us than ever before,” Belinda continued. “Paranormals are a peaceful people by nature.”
“How can you say that? Look around us. The Faction wasn’t exactly peaceful when stealing Wishery from its people. You can’t support what they do and believe that paranormals are peaceful.”
“I’ve been born into this business,” Belinda said. “My parents served The Faction leader before him, and I never left. For me, there is no other way of life.”
Belinda stepped further out onto the balcony, glancing behind her as if worried she’d been followed. Eventually, she shut the doors and joined me against the ledge.
“What’s it like out there?” she murmured. “Beyond the walls.”
“You haven’t been here your entire life,” I said. “Wishery has only fallen in recent days.”
“If not here, it’s somewhere else. The magic, the spells are different—always different, but also the same. Nobody in and nobody out.”
“If you wanted to leave, could you?”
She pinched her lips together. “I’m happy to be here serving the cause.”
“Sounds a lot like brainwashing to me.”
“I’ve never been touched by his magic.”
I started, glancing at her. “You’re talking about blood magic? You really believe he’s never used it on you?”
“There are others who don’t obey him as much as me. They require his discipline.” She shook her head. “He is our leader now. Before it was another. There is always someone to lead the fight.”
“Against what? Humans?”
“To bring the world back to the way it used to be.”
“Hasn’t anyone ever considered that the glory days might be gone? That all that’s left is to adapt or die? We can coexist with the humans, I’m sure of it. There has to be another way besides war.”
Belinda fell silent, obviously unwilling to speak ill of her leader. But in her eyes gleamed curiosity. I latched onto that, inched closer.
“I promise you, some of my closest friends live with the humans, work with them. For the majority of my life, I lived and worked as a human. I can tell you that for every non-paranormal who wants to hurt us, there are a hundred, or even a thousand, who would defend us.”
“That’s not what he tells us. He says they killed the woman he was to marry for no reason at all.”
“Why does he use mind bending, then? Maybe you’ve been influenced, Belinda, and you don’t even know it.”
“Impossible.”
“Until a few days ago, it was impossible to use wish magic for anything except Wishery.” I gestured around us. “One of the purest forms of magic to ever exist has been tainted.”
At this, she bowed her head. “I’m sorry.”
“Sorry for what?”
“I will tell you, only if you promise me one thing.” Her eyes flashed up at me. “Take me with you.”
“With me, where? I’m trapped here.”
“I can help you,” she whispered, her voice as quiet as a breeze. “I don’t want to be here any longer.”
“How do I know this isn’t a trap?”
“I need to see what it’s like,” she pleaded. “Out there. I need to know if there’s more to this world, if ther
e’s a life for me beyond these walls.”
She seemed earnest enough, but I hesitated. Belinda had gone from supporting Lucian to wanting to escape in a matter of minutes. If I was going to get out of here, however, I’d need help, and I had the feeling that would be hard to find in this place. It was a risk to trust Belinda, but one I’d have to take.
“Do you know where he’s keeping the islanders?” I asked, watching her reaction carefully.
“There’s a ten-minute window between guard shifts. I can take you there and show you. I’m sorry, but that’s all I can offer.”
“Is my cousin there? Poppy?”
“That useless vamp?”
“She’s not useless.”
“She can’t eat blood!”
“That doesn’t make her useless!”
“Either way, she’s there. I can show you if you’ll follow me.” She glanced at my gown. “Don’t let that drag along the floor.”
“WE’LL NEED YOUR HELP to give us a fighting chance of getting out,” I said, as we crept through the corridors. “If you bring me to Poppy and the others and they’re safe, I’ll take you with me, I promise.”
“Fine. It’s the least I can do.”
“What do you mean,” I pressed, following her through a maze of corridors, “that it’s the least you can do?”
She glanced at the artwork on the walls as if it could speak. Eventually, she cleared her throat, waiting until we’d reached a shadowy portion of the hall. “Obviously, it took a powerful spell to turn this wish magic inside out. He couldn’t do it alone. He used us, all of us, to funnel power into the spell.”
“You helped to create this place? The place that used to be Wishery?”
“No. Well, yes, but no. We didn’t know what we were doing at the time; he used us as sheer power, nothing more.”
“Why the change of heart now?”
A few steps further down the hallway, she hesitated and shifted her eyes toward the floor. “I think he’s going too far.”
“Are you not free to leave?”
“He says we are, but...” she paused, glancing around. Nobody was there, yet the feeling of being watched intensified. “We’re all chained here because of this spell. We’re tied to it in a way that can’t be unlocked by anyone except him or you...or so they say.”
